Notes From Day Seven: Hollywood Buddhism: A way forward?
Some actors and filmmakers are persuaded
that their own religion, or worldview, is
the way forward, and they seek to persuade
us too. One of these people is Philippe
Caland.
Caland's work includes a number of films that offer Buddhist responses to the issues facing the characters. Take, for example, Ripple Effect. This is the fictional story of Amer Atrash. He moved to the U.S. from Lebanon to use his entrepreneurial talents and developed a line of clothing named after himself.
The movie begins with Atrash's bankers delivering the news that the loan he needs to launch his new line is not going to happen. This is not his only problem. His relationship with his daughter has become distant, and his wife tells him to move out.
It turns out that this is a case of very, very bad karma. Shortly after arriving in America 15 years earlier, Atrash had a tragic accident: a troubled man named Phillip Blackman ran in front of the car Atrash was driving. Although Atrash stayed at the crash site for a while, he abandoned Blackman when another passersby come along. Blackman's injuries left him a paraplegic.
The memory of this has haunted Atrash ever since. The haunting is made worse by the fact that he knows Blackman and where he lives.
So, hoping to set things right, Atrash goes to meet his victim. After a rough start between the two of them, Blackman takes Atrash on a personal journey in which he tries to restore his karma.
The message of the film is that karma is real. The things we do have a ripple effect — a classic Buddhist concept — both good and bad. You must do all you can to create good karma because such karma is an energy that will benefit your current life, and it will improve life following reincarnation. The rippling energy of bad karma, on the other hand, will only create more bad, both now and later.
Karma will linger on and help — or not — those who are born into the world through the process of reincarnation (even though our individual identities will be lost). The future is determined by the karma left behind by our ancestors and by the karma each of us will leave behind. This makes it imperative that we avoid getting caught up in striving, which leads to negative actions.
And here is where Buddhism offers hope to those who are concerned for the long-term future of our world, and the shorter-term future too. By living in a non-violent and gentle way, we will leave behind a better world for future generations. Buddhism teaches that we must not become caught up in the striving for possessions, wealth, power, sexual conquest and other common pursuits.
The potential for Buddhism to benefit our world seems obvious to many people. It is not unusual to run into new adherents to Buddhism throughout Canada, even though they were not born in countries where Buddhism is part of the mainstream.
But does Buddhism offer an adequate response to the darkness that lies dormant or has become activated in each of us? The Christian understanding of the source of our woes is different; it is sharper, grittier, more troubling.
Anyone who has attended a Catholic or Protestant worship has heard of the concept of sin. The idea is that, yes, as with Buddhism, there must be a willingness and an attempt to leave it behind. But it is a deeply rooted power; we need the help of the Creator to overcome it. The power of sin to evoke evil in our lives is like a bloodstain on a white shirt. It is not easily removed. And the turning from evil toward good, for all of us, requires more than our own efforts. It requires prayer and ultimately the help of God.
Michael Veenema was a chaplain for about a decade at Fanshawe and the University of Western Ontario until 2004. He continues to write from a few coffee shops in Nova Scotia.
Editorial opinions or comments expressed in this online edition of Interrobang newspaper reflect the views of the writer and are not those of the Interrobang or the Fanshawe Student Union. The Interrobang is published weekly by the Fanshawe Student Union at 1001 Fanshawe College Blvd., P.O. Box 7005, London, Ontario, N5Y 5R6 and distributed through the Fanshawe College community. Letters to the editor are welcome. All letters are subject to editing and should be emailed. All letters must be accompanied by contact information. Letters can also be submitted online by clicking here.
Caland's work includes a number of films that offer Buddhist responses to the issues facing the characters. Take, for example, Ripple Effect. This is the fictional story of Amer Atrash. He moved to the U.S. from Lebanon to use his entrepreneurial talents and developed a line of clothing named after himself.
The movie begins with Atrash's bankers delivering the news that the loan he needs to launch his new line is not going to happen. This is not his only problem. His relationship with his daughter has become distant, and his wife tells him to move out.
It turns out that this is a case of very, very bad karma. Shortly after arriving in America 15 years earlier, Atrash had a tragic accident: a troubled man named Phillip Blackman ran in front of the car Atrash was driving. Although Atrash stayed at the crash site for a while, he abandoned Blackman when another passersby come along. Blackman's injuries left him a paraplegic.
The memory of this has haunted Atrash ever since. The haunting is made worse by the fact that he knows Blackman and where he lives.
So, hoping to set things right, Atrash goes to meet his victim. After a rough start between the two of them, Blackman takes Atrash on a personal journey in which he tries to restore his karma.
The message of the film is that karma is real. The things we do have a ripple effect — a classic Buddhist concept — both good and bad. You must do all you can to create good karma because such karma is an energy that will benefit your current life, and it will improve life following reincarnation. The rippling energy of bad karma, on the other hand, will only create more bad, both now and later.
Karma will linger on and help — or not — those who are born into the world through the process of reincarnation (even though our individual identities will be lost). The future is determined by the karma left behind by our ancestors and by the karma each of us will leave behind. This makes it imperative that we avoid getting caught up in striving, which leads to negative actions.
And here is where Buddhism offers hope to those who are concerned for the long-term future of our world, and the shorter-term future too. By living in a non-violent and gentle way, we will leave behind a better world for future generations. Buddhism teaches that we must not become caught up in the striving for possessions, wealth, power, sexual conquest and other common pursuits.
The potential for Buddhism to benefit our world seems obvious to many people. It is not unusual to run into new adherents to Buddhism throughout Canada, even though they were not born in countries where Buddhism is part of the mainstream.
But does Buddhism offer an adequate response to the darkness that lies dormant or has become activated in each of us? The Christian understanding of the source of our woes is different; it is sharper, grittier, more troubling.
Anyone who has attended a Catholic or Protestant worship has heard of the concept of sin. The idea is that, yes, as with Buddhism, there must be a willingness and an attempt to leave it behind. But it is a deeply rooted power; we need the help of the Creator to overcome it. The power of sin to evoke evil in our lives is like a bloodstain on a white shirt. It is not easily removed. And the turning from evil toward good, for all of us, requires more than our own efforts. It requires prayer and ultimately the help of God.
Michael Veenema was a chaplain for about a decade at Fanshawe and the University of Western Ontario until 2004. He continues to write from a few coffee shops in Nova Scotia.
Editorial opinions or comments expressed in this online edition of Interrobang newspaper reflect the views of the writer and are not those of the Interrobang or the Fanshawe Student Union. The Interrobang is published weekly by the Fanshawe Student Union at 1001 Fanshawe College Blvd., P.O. Box 7005, London, Ontario, N5Y 5R6 and distributed through the Fanshawe College community. Letters to the editor are welcome. All letters are subject to editing and should be emailed. All letters must be accompanied by contact information. Letters can also be submitted online by clicking here.
